THE SOCIAL-CONTEXT OF LONELINESS

The concrete situations of isolation are not actually properly studied and understood, in particular as a result of the imprecision of the d efinitions. The researchers who study the feeling of loneliness tend t o separate the subjective experience and the social contexts in which the single persons are inserted. So, it seems sometimes that no precis e correlation exists between isolation and loneliness. The married wom en, for example, seem to suffer from loneliness as much as unmarried. But this assertion is false and depends directly of the imperfection o f the instruments. A precise analysis of isolation would allow to esta blish a link with loneliness. It is necessary to take into account the social links and the social expectations of somebody. Thus, for the m arried women, loneliness has to be connected with a non-satisfied expe ctation in the conjugal relationship.